WIREDGOV

Over 700,000 people in Scotland with chronic pain are set to benefit from improved local services, including a dedicated residential service.

Speaking in Parliament, Cabinet Secretary Alex Neil outlined plans to establish a specialist intensive pain management residential service and increase access to therapies for people in Scotland.

In a drive to help more people to manage their pain, health boards have been tasked with creating action plans to improve the services available locally, such as pain-management.

A public consultation will be held in the summer to seek patients’ views on how the residential service should be delivered.

Cabinet Secretary Alex Neil said:

"The Scottish Government is committed to providing the best possible care for people with chronic pain. That is why I called this debate to discuss this important issue and our plans to improve services for Scottish patients – and that means treating patients as close to home as possible every time.

“We expect all health boards to have an action plan in place by the end of this year to improve local services and deliver faster access to the therapies that can help people to manage their pain and improve their quality of life.

“There will always be a small number of people who require more intensive pain management as often their pain cannot be cured. The creation of a Scottish residential service will ensure that those few patients will no longer need to travel outside Scotland to access specialist support.

“By holding a consultation we will listen to patients about how they feel a specialist service can be best delivered.”

During 2012-13 a total of 17 patients received NHS treatment in the Bath Chronic Pain Centre.

The consultation will seek views on a range of options for delivering this service. These will include a national centre, a service that will move around Scotland or retaining the current service with Bath Chronic Pain Centre.

The consultation is planned for launch in early July and will run until September, with a final decision announced later in the Autumn.